LETTER 


HON.  CHAS.  B.  MITCHELL. 


IN   RELATION   TO 


THE  IRON  BUSINESS 


ALABAMA, 


i—fr«»»« 


SELMA,   ALA.: 

MISSISSIPFIAN    STFA1I    BOOK    AND    JOB    OFFICE, 

1864. 


L  E  T  T  E  E. 


Shelby  County,  Ala.,  April  26th,  1864. 

Hon.  CHARLES  B.  MITCHELL, 

of  the  Confederate  Stales  Senate  : 

Being  informed  by  a  member  of  the  Shelby  Iron  Company 
that  you  solicit  information  in  regard  to  the  iron  business 
of  this  region,  with  a  view  to  important  measures  contem- 
plated, having  reference  to, the  military  service  ;  and  having 
a  similar  solicitation  from  another  source,  also  entitled  to 
consideration  and  respect,  the  undersigned,  constituting  the 
Board  of  Directors  of  the  above-named  Company,  while 
responding,  as  they  do  with  pleasure,  to  your  solicitation, 
will  embrace  this  opportunity  to  set  forth  as  succinctly  as 
practicable  the  information  they  possess  and  the  knowledge 
they  have  acquired  by  attention  to  the  subject  d's.ingtho 
two  last  years.  They  do  this  the  more  readily  'from  t/io 
conviction  that  the  subject  is  not  so  fully  and  generally 
understood,  and  appreciated,  as  its  great  and  vital  impor- 
tance requires. 

The  present  supply  of  iron  is  inadequate  for  the  public- 
service,  while  the   people   are   generally  cut  off  from   all 
sources  of  supply.     The  agriculturalists  are  generally  with- 
out iron  to  repair  their  old   and  worn-out  implements,  new 
ones  being  out  of  the  question,  while  there  is   danger  that 
railroads,  on  which   such   vital  interests  depend,  will  lose 
much  of  their  already  impaired  efficiency,  for  want  of  iron 
to  keep  their  machinery  in  repair,  and  for  the  construction 
of  the  additional  machinery  greatly  needed.     A  large  and 
_>_r early  increase  in  the  production  of  iron  must  therefore  be 
7—  regarded   as  a  matter  of  the  highest   necessity  ;  and-  this 
^  region  probably  must  be  mainly  relied  on  for  this  increase. 
]L.      Before  undertaking  to  show,  as  we  propose  to  do,  how  this 
^    increase  may  be  brought  about,  it  will  be  proper  to  take  a 
*•  brief  gurvey  of  the  past,  in  connection  with  the  natural 
*^  resources  of  this  region  in  the  materials  for  tb,  e  production 


of  iron.  Probably  no  country  on  the  globe  possesses  supe- 
rior, if  equal,  natural  advantages  for  the  production  of  iron 
of  superior  quality  on  an  extensive  scale.  In  a  wide  extent 
of  country,  intersected  by  the  Alabama  and  Tennessee 
Hirer  Railroad,  commencing  at  the  city  of  Selma,  on  the 
Alabama  river,  and  completed  135  miles  in  the  direction  of 
Rome,  in  Georgia,  iron  ores  and  mineral  coal,  both  of  supe- 
rior quality  and  conveniently  accessible,  exist  in  inexhaus- 
tible abundance.  These  minerals,  if  not  in  juxtaposition, 
arc  yet  in  such  proximity  that  they  may  be  regarded  as 
practically  lying  side  by  side.  With  these  unsurpassed  ad- 
vantages, how  is  the  'comparative  smallness  of  the  produc- 
tion of  iron  to  be  accounted  for? 

At  the  commencement  of  the  Avar,  very  little  had  been 
done  to  develope  the  mineral  resources  of  this  section  or 
State.  There  was  but  one  small  blast  furnace  and  a  small 
and  inferior  rolling-mill  in  operation  in  this  section,  and 
none  elsewhere,  that  we  know  of,  in  this  State.  Our  people 
were  content  to  draw  their  supplies  of  iron  from  England 
and  the  North,  while  overlooking,  or  perhaps  ignorant  of, 
the  greatly  superior  natural  advantages  existing  in  their 
midst,  for  the  production  of  iron  of  far  better  quality  than 
most  of  that  derived  from  abroad.  Hence,  tne  country  was 
without  the  knowledge  and  skill,  derived  alone  from  experi- 
ence, in 'the  business  of  manufacturing  iron,  as  those  seem 
to  have  been  to  whom  was  committed  the  important  duty 
of  calling  forth  and  directing  the  capital, and  energies  to  be 
embarked  in  the  business.  The  mode  of  making  iron,  con- 
demned and  abandoned  by  Englnnd  and  other  countries 
more  tkan  a  century  ago.  was  taken  up  and  exclusively  pur- 
sued ;  that  is,  the  use  of  charcoal,  instead  of  mineral  coal, 
as  fuel  in  the  production  of  pig  iron.  All  the  contracts  of 
which  we  have  any  knowledge,  made  with  the  Government 
for  pig  iron,  call  for  charcoal  pig  alone,  giving  a  decided 
preference  in  prices  to  that  which  is  made  by  the  sloweit 
and  most  difficult  process  :  that  is,  the  cold  blast  charcoal 
pig.  And  here  a  brief  reference  may  be  allowed  to  the  his- 
tory of  the  manufacture  of  iron  in  England,  whose  mighty 
power  and  prosperity  had  their  rise  in,  and  are  mainly  sus- 
tained by,  the  two  minerals  heretofore  so  neglected,  uot  to 
say  despised,  in  the  South — coal  and  iron. 

A  well-informed  and  intelligent  writer,  whose  production 
shows  that  he  had  given  very  close  attention  to  the  subject. 
in  enumerating  the  essentials  for  the  successful  prosecution 
of  the  business  of  making  iron,  states,  as  the  first  and  most 
•mportant :     "  An  adequate  supply  of  the  requisite  raw  ma- 


terials— ore,  limestone  and  mineral  coal — for  charcoal,  can 
only  be  used  to  an  insignificant  extent."  In  illustration  of 
this,  the  same  wriier  states  :  "It  surprises  the  inquirer,  10 
find  that  in  the  year  1740,  the  tptal  production  of  iron  in 
England  'amounted  to  not  more  than  17,350  tons.  The 
destruction  of  wood  caused  by  this  insignificant  product 
was  so  rapid,  that  the  business  of  making  iron  was  likely  to 
be  extinguished,  when  the  evil  which  was  dreaded  gave 
bir,th  to  a  remedy  which  imparted  new  life  to  the  produc- 
tion, and  has  enabled  it  to  reach  its  present  gigantic  pro- 
portions " — then  (1S55)  estimated,  or  rather  stated  to  be 
3,585,906  tons.  "  This  remedy  was  the  substitution  6*f  pit 
or  mineral  coal  for  charcoal."  This  stupendous  result  was 
attained  in  England  with  ores  much  more  difficult  to  be 
mined,  and  known  to  be  greatly  inferior  in  richness  and 
o'her  qualities  to  the  ores  which  aboun  1  in  this  region. 
The  ores  of  En  Aur.d  and  Wales,  it  is  stated  on  good  au- 
thority, yield  only  about  30  per  cent,  of  iron,  while  the  ores 
of  this  region,  with  which  we  are  most  familiar,  yield  from 
50  to  60  per  cent.,  and  iron  very  greatly  superior  to  the 
generality  of  that  produced  in  England  or  Wales. 

These  facts  and  others  similar,  which  cOtild  be  adduced, 
show  clearly,  we  think,  that' wo  have  set  out  upon  and  are 
pursuing  a  wrong  policy.  Even  if  the  iron  produced  by 
mineral  coal  were  not  so  good  as  that  produced  by  charcoal, 
still  it  would  he  better  to  have  iron  not  quite  so  good,  than 
not  to  have  it  at  all.  But  it  has  been  recently  proved,  by 
experiment  made  by  this  Company,  that  ircfn.  of  superior 
quality  can  be  made  from  our  ores,  by  the  use  of. the  mine- 
ral coal  of  this  region  exclusively  as  fuel,  in  the  whole  pro- 
cess from  the  ore  to  bar  iron.  The  result  of  this  experi- 
ment was  every  way  satisfactory.  The  iron  was  subject  el 
to  severe  tests,  and  exhibited  remarkable  strength  and 
toughness. 

Asa  further  and  practical  illustration  of  this  subject,  we 
will  state  something  of  the  operations  and  experience  of- 
this  Company.  Unacquainted  with  the  business  as  they 
were,  ihey  commenced,  some  two  years  ago,  with  the  idea 
of  constructing  three,  four  or  five  blast  furnaces,  expecting 
to  make  some  ten  thousand  tons  or  more  of  iron  per  year, 
after  completing  their  arrangements.  But  the  first  furnace 
built  by  them  had  not  been  long  in  operation,  before  they 
discovered  that  it  would  be  a  hard  task  to  keep  that  single 
furnace  ill  full  and  constant  operation  With  charcoal,  even 
while  the  wood  from  which  the  coal  was  obtained  stood 
within   convenient  proximity   to  the  furnace.     The  forests 


which  stood  near  have,  in  a  great  measure,  disappeared, 
materially  increasing  the  difficulty  of  procuring  fuel.  From 
this  and  other  causes  growing  out  of  the  condition  of  the 
country,  such  as  want  of  laborers,  the  scarcity  and  dearness  * 
of  provisions  and  all  other  necessaries,  the  impracticability 
of  obtaining  teams -to  put  in  the  places  of  those  worn  out 
by  hard  and  constant  service,  the  business  is  attended  with 
many  more  difficulties  now  than  in  the  early  part  of  last 
year.  "With  great  exertion,  the  Company  were  able  to 
make  and  deliver  to  the  Government  last  year,  counting 
from  March  to  March,  only,  about  3,500  tons,  including  what 
they  used  in  improvements  and  repairs.  Small  as  this 
quantity  may  appear,  it  exceeds  what  any  other  Company 
in  this  State  made  within  the  same  period.  The  difficulties 
attending  the  business  now,  being  considerably  greater  than' 
heretofore,  this  quantity  is  not  likely  to  be  increased,  but 
rather  diminished,  in  the  future,  under  the  present  system. 
But  we  presume  this  system  Aviil  not  be  adhered  to.  We 
are  about  making  propositions  to  the  Nitre  and  Mining 
Bureau  at  Bichuiond,  looking  to  changes  which,  as  they  in- 
volve no  loss  or*  expense  or  inconvenience  to  the  Govern- 
ment, while  promising  a  large  increase  in  the  production  of 
iron,  we  can  hardly  doubt,  will  receive  the  proper  sanction. 
If  this  is  done,  we  propose  to  complete  a  new  furnace,  com- 
menced last  year,  construct  a  railroad  from  our  works  to  the 
Alabama  and  Tennessee  River  ro;:d.  about  six  miles,  on 
which  the  work  is  far  advanced  and  in  progress,  and  make 
other  necessary  arrangements  for  obtaining  a  full  and  regu- 
lar supply  of  mineral  coal.  This  being  done,  and. substitu- 
ting mineral  for  charcoal,  we  have  great  confidence  in  the 
ability  of  the  Company  to  increase  the  manufacture  of  iron 
more  than  a  hundred  per  cent.,  without  increasing  the  num- 
ber of  laborers  required*  in  their  present  business,  and  with 
one-fourth  the  number  of  wagons  and  teams  now  employed. 
Tt  is  deemed  unnecessary  to  go  into  a  statement  of  particu- 
lars to  show  how  this*  result  can  be  brought  about.  The 
great  advantage  consists  in  dispensing  with  a  large  number 
of  hands  and  teams  required  in  the  production  and  hauling 
of  charcoal,  and  in  the  increased  amount  of  iron  which  an 
equal  quantity  of  mineral'eoal  will  produce.  It  is  estimated 
that  the  hands  required  in.  the  production  and  delivery  of 
charcoal  for  one  furnace,  are  sufficient  to  mine  coal  enough 
for  two  furnaces.  This  Company  propose  to  mine  the'r  own 
coal,  having  one  mine  opened  and  being  eugaged  in  opening 
another.     What  is  practicable  for  this  Company,  may  be 


fairly  presumed  to  be  so  for  a  portion  at  least  of  the  other 
Companies  of  this  region.  ,    . 

The  business  of  mining  coal  is  being  largely  extended, 
and  under  the  arrangements  completed  and  in  progress,  the 
prospects  are  that  the  supply  of  coal  will,  ere  very  long,  be 
ample.  The  principal  difficulty  to  be  apprehended  in  the 
successful  prosecution  of  the  plan  of  Instituting  mineral 
coal  for  charcoal,  in  a  large  degree,  is  the  want  of  railroad 
machinery  for  transporting  the  coal.  The  present  ma- 
chinery is  insufficient,  but  we  understand  that  arrangements 
have  been  made  to  bring  upon  the  road  considerable  addi- 
tional machinery*. 

We  will  now  proceed  to  give  you,  as  nearly  as  we  can, 
the  special  information  you  desired. 

We  have  no  sufficient  data  on  which  to  state  the  quantity 
of  iron  produced  in  this  State  during  the  last  twelve  months, 
say  from  first  of  March,  1863,  to  March,  1864  ;  but  probably 
it  was  considerably  less  than  10,000  tons.  There  were  in 
this  region  but  three  blast  furnaces  in  operation  during  the 
first  half  of  last  year,  and  one  on  the  Coosa  river,  the  iron 
from  which  goes  to  Rome,  Ga.  Three  other  furnaces  were 
started,  one  in  June  or  July,  ancfe  two  others  subsequently. 
If  these  seven  furnaces  shall  be  kept  in  regular  operation, 
adhering  to  the  use  of  charcoal,  it  may  be  reasonably  cal- 
culated that  they  will  together  produce  from  300  to  320  tons 
per  week,  or  from  13,000  to  14,000  tons  per  year,  presuming 
they  will  run  forty-four  weeks  in  a  year. 

Four  or  five  additional  furnaces  are  expected  to  be  in 
operation  in  the  course  of  three  or  four  months,  and  one  of 
them  may  already  be  in  operation.  These  furnaces  will  be 
of  greater  capacity  than  the  average  of  those  heretofore  in 
operation.  Should  they  commence  operations,  say  four  of 
them,  by  the  first  of  July  or  August,  and  run  bight  or  nine 
months  up  to  the  first  of  March,  the  average  product  of  the 
four  may  be  reasonably  estimated  at  from  210  to  220  tons 
per  week,  or  from  6,500  to  7,500  tons  for  the  eight  or  nine 
months.  This,  added  to  the  estimates  given  above  for' the 
other  furnaces,  would  give  about  20,000  tons  from  March, 
1864,  to  March,  1865.  These  estimates  are  deemed  reasona- 
ble, under  the  supposition  that  the  furnaces  referred  to  be 
kept  in  regular  operation  with  charcoal  for  the  periods 
mentioned.  It  would  not,  however,  be  safe  to  rely  with  ful> 
confidence  on  this  result  under  existing  circumstances,  if  the 
exclusive  use  of  charcoal  be  adhered  To  in  the  production  of 
pig  iron. 

But  presuming  that  {wo  or  three  of  the  present  furnaces, 
and  two  of  those  to  be  completed,  embracing  the  largest  of 


8 

the  furnace's,  shall  be  operated-  with  mineral  coal  for  seven 
*or  eight  months  prior  to  the  first  of  March  next,  say  for 
thirty  weeks,  the  increased  production  from  them  might  he 
reasonably  put  at  from  280  to  300  tons  per  week,  or  from, 
8,000  to  9,000  tons  per  thirty  weeks,  which  is  probably  more» 
iron  than  was  made  1^  all  the  furnaces  of  this  region  for 
the  year  ending  the  first  of  March  last. 

"VVe  come  now  to  speak  of  the  rolling-mills  of  this  State. 

This  Company  have  one,  the  capacity  of  which,  with  the 
addition  of  two  or  three  more  puddling  furnaces,  Avhich 
could  soon  be  constructed,  may  be  estimated  at  30  tons  per 
day  of  gunboat  plate,  and  proportionably  of  smaller  sizes, 
making  an  average  of  about  twenty  tons  per  day  of  various 
sizes. 

There  is  a  large  rolling-mill  at  Selma  nearly  completed, 
and  expected  to  go  into  operation  in  May  next.  The  ca- 
pacity of  this  mill  is  estimated  at  thirty  tons  per  day  of 
gunboat  plate  and  other  large  sizes,  being  constructed  with 
the  view  of  making  gunboat  plates,  boiler  plates,  etc.  The 
same  Company,  we  understand,  are  making  preparations  for 
the  construction  of  a  mill  for  making  small  and  ordinary 
sizes  of  iron. 

There  is  a  small  rolling-mill  at  Montgomery,  but  we  are 
not  informed  of  its  capacity;  but  it  is  probably  from  three 
to  five  tons  per  day. 

The  Government  own  a  rolling-mill  on  the  Alabama  and 
Tennessee  River  Railroad.  It  is  new  and  represented  to  be 
a  very  good  mill.  It  is  adapted,  we  believe,  for  the  manu- 
facture of  small  and  ordinary  sizes  only.  We  are  not  in- 
formed of  its  capacity.  • 

Arrangements  are  in  progress  for  the  erection  of  two 
rolling-mills  on- the  Central  Railroad,  which  connects  with 
the  Alabama  and  Tennessee  River  road.  It  is  understood 
that  one,  if  not  both,  of  these  mills  wilLJbe  of  large  capacity, 
belonging  to  a  large  and  strong  Company. 

It  is  doubtless  a  reasonable  estimate,  that  the  mills  now  in 
operation,  and  the  one  in  iSelma  soon  to  be  completed,  can, 
if  supplied  with  the  requisite  number  of  proper  workmen 
'  and  the  necessary  materials,  make  iToni  fifty  to  sixty  tons  of 
iron  per  day,  including  from  thirty  to  forty  tons  of  gunboat 
plates  and  other  large  sizes.  The  other  mills  referred  to, 
when  completed  and  in  operation,  would 'probably  increase 
the  quantity  from  thirty-live  to  forty-five  tons  per  day. 
These  est  mates  are  based  upon  the  presumption  that  the 
mils  would  have  a  full  quota  of  compel ent  workmen'and  an 
ample  supply  of  the  necessary  materials.     To  the  Extent 


that  these  may  be  lacking,  the  product  of  course  would  be 
diminished. 

There  being  yet  wide,  unoccupied  fields,  other  establish- 
ments may,  and  doubtless  under  proper  encouragement 
will,  spring  up  for  the  manufacture  of  borh  pitr  and  bar  iron. 

A  branch  railroad  is  being  constructed  from  the  Alabama 
and  Tennessee  JRiver  l'oad  into  a  portion  of  what  is  consid- 
ered one  of  the  niost  valuable  coal  fields  in  this  State,  where 
the  coal  seams  are  said  to  range  from  three  and  a  half  to 
six  feet  and  upwards  in  thickness,  and  well  situated,  many 
of  them  for  cheap  and  convenient  mining.  One  vein,  said 
to  measure  twelve  feet  in  thickness,  has  been  d  scovered: 
It  is  estimated  that  the  region  to  be  penetrated  and  devel- 
oped by  this  branch  road,  which  it  is  intended  to  complete 
at  the  earliest  day  practicable  to  an  extent  sufficient  to  de- 
velopc  a  large  portion  of  the  coal,  will  afford  many  millions 
•of  tons.  A  good  many  hands  are  now  at  work  there,  open- 
ing mines  or  getting  out  coal,  which  is  done  entirely,  or 
nearly  so,  with  negro  labor.  A  comparatively  small  number 
•  of  experienced  and  skilled  miners,  to  lead  in  and  direct  the 
work,  would  greatly  improve  and  facilitate  the  operations. 

If  we  have  transcended  what  was  expected,  and  gone 
more  at  large  into  the  subject  of  your  inquiry  than  was  an- 
ticipated, let  it  be  attributed  to  our  deep  impression  of  the 
importance  of  the  matters  referred  to.  And  as  we  have 
studiously  endeavored  to  confine  our  observations  strictly 
within  the  limits  of  practical  truths  bearing  directly  on  the 
subject,  and  to  avoid  the  presentation  of  all  impertinent 
facts  and  considerations,  we  cannot  doubt  that  our  response 
In  the  unexpected  shape  presented  will  be  acceptable. 

The  facts  herein  brought  to  view  cannot  be  too  w<  11  or 
widely  known,  and  there  is  reason  to  believe  they  are  very 
imperfectly  known,  even  to  the  comparatively  few  usually 
well-informed  on  all  subjects  relating  to  the  important  in- 
terests of  the  country,  whose  minds  have  been  engrossed  b? 
other  more  directly  pressing,  though  not  more  important, 
subjects. 

There  is  a  matter  connected  with  this  subject,  too  impor- 
tant to  be  passed  over  without  special  notice.  We  allude  to 
the  want  of  rolling-mill  workmen.  Everything  else  may  be 
possessed  in  abundance,  but  bar  iron  cannot  be  made  with- 
out competent  workmen.  The  possession  of  a  sufficient 
number  of  these  is  indispensable  for  any  considerable  in- 
crease in  the  production.  There  are  barely  enough  of  the^e 
workmen  for  the  present  limited  business,  and  there  are  but 
few  in  the  country,  unless  they  are   in  the  army.     If  they 


10 

are  there,  we  think  that  systematic  steps  should  be  taken -ttv 
ascertain  where  they  are,  so  that  they  may  be  detailed  wheals* 
they  are  most  needed.     The  comparatively  few  men  of  this- 
class,  who  would  hardly  be  missed  from  the  ranks,  cobM.. 
render  the  country  better  service  in  making  iron,  doubtless, 
than  ten  times  their  number  in  the  army.     If  the}-  canasofr 
be  obtained  in  this  way  in   sufficient   31  umbers,  we  wo»M' 
suggest  the  importance  of  measure-  to  induce  them  to  cob*?/ 
from  abroad,  and  to  retain  the:::,   here.     We   have  no  doaM 
of  the  entire  practicability  of  this,  if  proper  and  judicious  • 
agents  were  sent  abroad  empowered   to  give   satisfactory 
guarantees  of  perfect  exemption   from   all  military  service-,.. 
and  prepared  to   offer  pecuniary  inducements,  such  as  o®jr 
enemies  do  not  hesitate  to  do  for  men  far  less  valuable  &®&. 
important  to  them.     If  they  can  afford  to  lavish  millions-  sdF 
dollars,  not  to  procure  artisans  necessary  to  their  service,, 
but  to  lure  to  their  ranks  of  death,  to  be  hurled  against  ovx 
citizen-soldiers,  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  of  stalwart 
peasants  of  Ireland  and  other  countries,  cannot  our  Govern- 
ment, in  aid  of  its  sacred  cause,  in  comparison  with  whiclr 
mere  money  should  be  counted  as  dross — can  it  not  afford 
to  expend  the  amount,  whatever  it  may  be.  necessary  tc 
obtain  and  secure  such  number  of  competent  artisans  as  ixs- 
service  absolutely  and  imperatively  demands  ?    Men  of  thfe- 
class,  more,  probably,  than  can  be  found  in  the  Confederacy... 
are  indispensable  ;  and,  in  our  judgment,   no  pains   or  ox.*- 
pense  should  be  spared  to  obtain  them,  with  as  little  delay 
as  possible. 

While  on  this  subject,  we  would  call  attention  to  soaae 
important  matters  relating  to  it.  which  seem  to  require  au- 
thoritative attention.  Rolling-mill  workmen  arc  a  some- 
what peculiar  class.  They  are  hard-working  men.  W« 
would  not  go  among  them  to  find  criminals  nor  law- breakem. 
There  is  a  sympathy  among  them  toward  each  oths^, 
amounting  almost  to  clanishness.  They  do  not  meddle  tnudb 
with  public  or  governmental  affairs,  and  are  probably  njcsre- 
cosmopolitical  than  almost  any  other  class.  Where  tbear 
business  is,  there  is  their  country.  There  are,  of  couyssv 
exceptions  in  this  case,  as  in  all  general  rules.  These  allu- 
sions are  necessary  for  a  proper  comprehension  of  the  fos*«« 
of  what  follows.  Knowing  the  importance  of  men  of  tfeog- 
class  to  us,  our  enemies,  it  is  stated,  have  adopted  a  cora®& 
intended  and  well  calculated  to  draw  them  away,  and  thes* 
efforts  have  not  been  without  considerable  success.  &% 
least  many  of  these  men  have  left,  some  doubtless  under 
enticements  from  the  enemy,,  and  some  from  apprehensions- 


11 

of  conscription  (unacquainted  with  the  laws  on  the  subject)  ; 
or,  as  there  is  reason  to  believe,  to  escape  the  frequent  an- 
noyances of  oyer-stringent  enrolling  or  conscripting  officers. 
jBe  this  as  it  may,  it  is  certain  that  these  officers  have  caused 
much,  and,  it  is  believed,  unnecessary  annoyance  to  persons 
and  Companies  engaged  in  manufacturing  iron,  and  their 
employees,  in  this  way,  doubtless  without  intending  it, 
they  have  seconded  the  schemes  of  the  enemy  to  deprive  us 
of  these  valuable  men.  We  have  information,  deemed  re- 
liable, that  a  circular,  under  high  authority  from  the  enemy, 
has  been  circulated  among  rolling-mill  workmen  offering  a 
large  pecuniary  reward  and  other  inducements  to  such  of 
them  as  would  leave  this  country  and  go  to  the  enemy,  the 
main  motive,  of  course,  being  to  deprive  us  of  their  services. 
Under  this  double  influence  of  repulsion  and  attraction,  it 
is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  many  of  these  men  should  have 
disappeared  from  this  country.  One  of  these  forces  may 
be  neutralized  and  the  other  should  be  Contracted,  if  possible. 

Yery  respectfully,  yours, 

A.  T.  JONES,  President;  ' 

J,  W.  LAPSLEY, 

J .  M.  McCLANAFAN, 

HOEACE  WARE, 
E.  T.  WATTS, 

Directors. 


~J', 


m 


